FIA Main Event
Pre-Main Event RWYB

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18:00

Jacob Ferrer put in what looked like a planned half-pass, straight as you like, maybe that's what was being tested. He clocked 8.88/110.99 on the early shut off run.

It's started raining now so the event has been closed five minutes early.

So that's all for today and this weekend, we will be continuing our build-up to the Main Event with a report and pictures from the Press Day on Wednesday.

Your reporter today was Tog of eurodragster.com, all pictures by Sharkman of eurodragster.com. Coverage was brought to you in association with our sponsors e-manumit.com and High Performance Heaven, to whom continued thanks. Thanks also to Chris Isaacs for helping us to identify a few unfamiliar racers, thanks also to Martin Wallis of the timing crew, to Ian Marshall, Kjell Petterson and all of the SPR officials and track crew for their help.

See you on Wednesday!

16:50

We've now posted a bunch of pictures from today's action, you can get to them from the raceday update index page.

The staging lanes and collection area are full, and we're running until 6:00 pm, so stay tuned.

16:15

As is becoming traditional at Run What You Brungs we have a new entrant in the SPRC rental Junior Stock Dragster. This week it's young Christopher Gadney, son of Super Gas racer Dave. Christopher has been putting in passes in the 14s at close to forty miles an hour, and his reaction times are getting better each time. Dave tells us that Christopher is loving it.

Neil Curtis of 9.90 Bike and Phil Pratt of 10.90 Bike matched up, Neil getting there first with a 10.54/135.40 to Phil's 11.08/124.06, I could be wrong but I rather suspect that that is Phil's personal best ET.

Ashley Bell made his first appearance in his Pro ET Thunderbird, going a few feet off the line and then spinning the tyres in a pool of liquid, the theory is trans fluid, the car going way out of shape.

If the theory about good deeds and karma and all that stuff is true, then Spencer Tramm ought to be drowning in good fortune just for the amount of help he has given us at Eurodragster. Unfortunately though it hasn't worked out like that since the just-repaired engine of his Super Street/Pro ET Sierra broke in the pits this morning. Hope to see yourself and Chris back on track soon, mate.

We're currently down for fluid on the startline, tune back for more later.

15:40

Micke Kågered put in a huge burnout, kept it going to one hundred feet, and then a full pass, the car swaying left and right a little all the way down the track. Probably not 100% power, 6.292/207.99 although it looked quicker.

Al Didwell is here with his Pro ET Capri, one pass so far of 11.25/118.12.

We've had some good passes from the Street Racer Sunday guys, some getting down into the elevens. Mick Rogers is here with his Custom Car Street Eliminator Cortina, problems on his first pass though, sidelining the car after a bang at half-track. Andy Ryan, also of CCSE, put in a pass in the fifteens, looking to be struggling to find traction.

In fact just as I type, Andy is lined up with Pro ET racer Tim Garlick...and a beautiful straight run from Tim, 10.21/98.99 to Andy's 14.46, looked as if both Tim and Andy were off it early.

Tune back later for more from the track.

15:20

Well, now we feel even sorrier for Job Heezen. The bike sounded just great until the engine stopped dead in the middle of the burnout. Job's crew then removed a number of those rods which run on the outside of supertwin engines, some of them were bent way out of shape. Here's hoping it's nothing serious.

Because today is a public test we will be able to publish the Pro racers' times and speeds in full, thanks for your forbearance yesterday but we are sure you understand.

Manty Bugeja just put in a great pass in the Top Methanol Dragster, 6.052 at a whopping 227.47, we were all worried for a moment as the chutes never appeared, but just as our hearts stopped out they came. An excellent run from Manty.

Jacob Ferrer followed Manty with a wild run, another great burnout and then a very out-of-shape pass, the car getting almost sideways towards half-track where Jacob eventually decided that discretion was the better part of valour etc., and recorded 8.55/116.31.

Micke Kågered is towing down to the collection area, watch this space.

14:10

Well, you wouldn't believe it could happen, but the track is almost dry!

The rain stopped, and Chief Starter Ian Marshall put out a heartfelt plea on the PA for street cars to come and drive up and down the track to disperse the water. Several cars immediately took the the track, almost all keeping to Ian's request to drive sedately and sensibly since the water was sitting on top of the prepped track surface making the track a skating rink. Of course one or two idiots had to test the surface out rather than take Ian's word for it, one guy spinning his car through two complete revolutions and almost taking out the 330-foot timing reflector, and another skidding his Renault into the back of his mate's car and then sliding between the two sets of armco on the start line. You have to wonder what he's going to put on his insurance claim, hopefully his insurers are reading this.

Today is a Street Racer Sunday, this is a series of events organised by Street Machine magazine. There are prizes for the quickest times at each event and then jackets for the overall class winners at the end of the year. Street Machine editor Richard Nicholls tells us that the Street Racer Sundays are only open to rear-wheel drive cars, there are classes for V8s and four-cylinder cars. They have to be fully street-legal, no slicks or cheater tyres for example, but otherwise anything goes.

Micke Kågered has been checking out the track so let's hope that that means he'll be running later on.

As soon as racers start running then we'll be back with a report.

11:20

You've got to feel sorry for Holland's Job Heezen, European Super Twin Top Gas Series Champion. He has come all the way from Holland for today's test session and like the rest of us is sitting here watching it rain. He tells us that he is here to test the many changes he has made over the winter. A decision about whether he comes back for next week's Main Event was dependent upon today's testing, so he could be left with a difficult choice. "Every time we want to run we have to cross the North Sea", said Job, explaining that testing opportunities are very limited in Holland with only two races and a test day available at Drachten in a year.

Jon Webster tells us that he suffered engine damage on his single pass yesterday, a porous bore was found to be the cause. "The holes were really tiny", he saud, "you could only see them with a magnifying glass and a lot of light". He has already stripped the engine and is sending it away to be repaired, hopefully in time for next weekend's race.

After a downpour of biblical proportions the rain has now eased, although not totally stopped. The tractor and sweeper are out on the track trying to get rid of the surface water, so all is not yet lost. Stay tuned and if anything happens you'll be the first to know.

10:00

If you followed our test day coverage yesterday you will have read that the rains came right at the end of the day. Unfortunately the rains have not really gone away overnight and in the last hour or so it has really come down, the track is soaked. It's not looking too good for any on-track action at present. But stay tuned, you never know what miracles may happen.